The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
PRIORITY CHARGE HANDLING TASK FORCE
LITIGATION TASK FORCE
REPORT
PAUL M. IGASAKI,
Chairman
Chair, Priority Charge Handling Task Force
PAUL STEVEN MILLER,
Commissioner
Chair, Litigation Task Force
March 1998
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Report of the Priority Charge Handling and
Litigation Task Forces
The Commission has made substantial progress in many areas since
implementation of the Priority Charge Handling Procedures (PCHP) in
1995 and the National Enforcement Plan (NEP) in 1996. Field offices
have reduced the charge inventory by more than 40%, victims of
discrimination are recovering more benefits as a result of
Commission enforcement efforts, and the number of cases in the
agency's docket that challenge the most serious violations is
increasing.
The challenge facing the Commission is how it can build on its
recent successes by creating an enforcement program that has the
maximum impact on workplace discrimination within the confines of
its budget. This report offers recommendations for improvement in
four critical areas.
- The Task Forces recommend increased collaboration and
coordination of the activities of the EEOC's 50 field offices and
headquarters so that the Commission, as a whole, functions as a
single strategic law enforcement agency by:
- increasing the level of teamwork between field offices, and
between headquarters and the field, through the sharing of
resources and expertise, and through mutual support of our common
enforcement goals;
- enhancing information sharing among field and headquarters for
the purpose of developing a more effective enforcement
program;
- emphasizing the critical role of training and technology in
achieving the agency's NEP objectives; and
- creating an advisory group composed of field and headquarters
staffs who will assist the Commission in further developing and
implementing NEP strategies.
- The Task Forces recommend revising the Local Enforcement Plans
("LEPs") so that they will require each field office to have clear
and achievable goals for investigative and litigation activity,
tailored to the unique circumstances of each district office and
the community it serves. LEPs will include:
- quantitative and qualitative measures of performance with
respect to developing and resolving NEP/LEP cases (both in
investigation and litigation), in the settlement of charges, and
the maintenance of a balanced and manageable inventory;
- an increased emphasis on the use of Commissioner charges and
directed investigations to fill gaps in office LEP implementation;
and
- a more proactive use of outreach, particularly to under-served
groups, to develop and to achieve the enforcement goals set out in
the LEPs.
- The Task Forces recommend more fully fine-tuning the agency's
charge process reforms to continue reducing the inventory and
focusing investigative resources on strong cases, including:
- maintaining a balanced approach to inventory management and
adjusting the agency's charge process to continue reducing the
charge inventory, focusing resources on finding and developing
NEP/LEP cases, dismissing C cases expeditiously, and ensuring the
steady flow, development and re-categorization of B cases;
- providing better customer service through improvements in the
level and quality of responsive service to those who are served by
EEOC, especially at intake, but throughout the entire enforcement
process;
- greater consideration of balance and in-depth coverage of
priorities identified in the LEP during the case categorization
process;
- increasing emphasis on settlement and mediation at all stages
of the charge process as appropriate, and encouraging the exchange
of information with the parties when it is balanced and facilitates
resolution; and
- developing private bar relationships to create programs for
joint training and enhanced cooperation opportunities.
- The Task Forces recommend that the Commission continue to break
down barriers between legal and investigative staffs so that each
office functions as a cohesive team, with District Directors and
Regional Attorneys jointly accountable for meeting LEP goals,
including:
- building on recent successes in attorney-investigator
collaboration in the development and litigation of NEP/LEP cases in
many offices;
- enhancing the level of attorney support to investigators in
local and area offices; and
- reducing administrative and reporting burdens of field
investigative and legal staffs, so that they can focus on priority
enforcement activities.
The full text of the Task Force Report is available for download
in the following formats:
HTML
ZIP-compressed ASCII
This page was last modified on April 2, 1998.
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